St. Louis Park Student Pulled from School Pool

A St. Louis Park Middle School student is hospitalized after a possible drowning in the school’s pool Thursday, according to officials.

Just before 9 a.m., St. Louis Park dispatchers received a 911 call about the incident at the school.

A school resource officer was in the building and immediately responded to the pool area where a teacher pulled the 12-year-old boy out of the pool and was performing CPR. The teacher found the seventh grader unresponsive -- and not breathing -- after a physical education swimming class wrapped up, according to police.

No lifeguards are posted at the pool. The teacher is a certified water safety instructor, but the qualifications for those two certifications differ -- lifeguards are required to undergo more rigorous rescue and emergency situation training, while water safety instructor training is more focused on teaching others to swim.

St. Louis Park Police and Fire continued performing CPR until Hennepin County Paramedics arrived, and while the student was rushed to Park Nicollet Methodist Hospital in an ambulance. He was later transferred to Gillette Children's Hospital in St. Paul.

Additional information was not immediately available about the student’s identity or condition.

"It's a very sad for the middle school. Certainly, we seek to provide the safest environment for all students, and it's very sad that one of our students met with misfortune today," said Sara Thompson, communications manager with the St. Louis Park School District.

Conferences set for Thursday night were canceled.

School officials plan on having counselors on hand for students Friday.